How to Win a Listing Presentation
Want to know how to win a listing presentation? Real estate coach Denise Lones knows what it takes and has great visual examples to guide you forward.
Agents understand the inner workings of what it takes to put a listing on the market and the benefits of each step of their listing process. In fact, they know it so well, that they often discount the value of these individual items and assume the seller understands what the agent is going to do.
However, the agent may assume themselves right out of a job.
Many agents don't take the time to talk about what they will do to help the seller prepare their home for sale. They don't talk about what their method is for presenting the home to the market and how they intend to market the home. This isn't how to win a listing presentation. The seller may then assume that all real estate agents do the same thing - and that is where agents run into trouble in terms of suggested list price and their commission and fees.
I have a background in new construction and have helped many builders and developers market and sell both large and small developments, near and far. I am an MIRM (Master in Residential Marketing) for the National Association of Homebuilders - which means that I have achieved the top level for professionals in new home marketing. So, when I talk about marketing and how to win a listing presentation, trust me, I know a thing or two.
The New Home Marketing Experience vs Your Listing Presentation
One thing that has always stayed with me when thinking about new home marketing is the power of a model home and sales center. When a potential buyer walks into the sales center, they see posters of the builder, their story, and information on the community. There might also be a topographical map of the development with the lots marked - those still for sale and those already spoken for, home model options and elevations, samples of options and upgrades and more. A sales center gets the potential buyer visually excited. The visuals make the process easy and the potential buyer is more-likely to move forward.
Compare that experience to your listing presentation. I see so many agents today who are doing themselves and their sellers a disservice. They think they have the best listing presentation, but they:
- Don't have visuals of the marketing they will be doing
- Rely solely on a Powerpoint to show their process
- Only bring in a CMA as supplemental print material - or worse, they only send a link to an online CMA
Most agents today have discounted the power of visuals. They have discounted the power of getting the seller excited about how their home is going to be presented to the market and they have discounted the power of printed materials.
I am here to tell you that the agents I work with, agents who ARE using highly-visual printed materials are getting the listings! How? I am going to share examples of FOUR visual tools that will wow sellers and I will show you how to win a listing presentation.
Make Your Listing Presentation Process Visual!
Anyone can make a list of what they do in Word, but today's seller needs to see the process come to life visually. Those agents who have a Listing Presentation System that includes information and visuals on all the aspects of your marketing including:
- Your Home Preparation Process
- Staging
- Professional Photography including drone or twilight
- 3D Tours and/or Video
- Signage
- Print Marketing including house flyers, just listed cards, neighborhood listing letters, special feature cards, QR codes, etc.
- Online Listing Syndication
- Single Property Websites
- Social Media
- Open Houses
- Brokers Opens
Of course, you would only include the marketing you actually do - this is only a list of recommendations. But imagine a packet that includes a whole page for each one of these items. That page includes a description of the marketing, why the agent does it, and a photo that includes a visual of that item.
Compare the visual impact of the typed list above with the power of the visual listing presentation samples shown below. Which are you more impressed by? Which one is more likely to help you win a listing presentation?
Include Physical Marketing Examples at Your Listing Presentation
In addition to the categories in the package, I also encourage agents to bring physical samples of print marketing so the seller can see the marketing life-size and get a feel for the type of paper these are printed on.
Remember to think of your presentation like the sales center. The builder would have a package that tells the whole story which might include floorplans, but if you were a potential buyer, you would want to have each of the floorplans you were considering on a separate sheet of paper.
Bring a Photo Book to Your Listing Presentation
A photo book is simply a collection of the type of professional photography the seller can expect. Shutterfly creates a beautiful book and you can order a 10” x 10” version or a 12” x 12” version (my preference is the larger!). Make sure you follow your photographer's rules regarding usage, but I suggest including a variety of home styles and prices, some drone footage, twilight, and more.
Although you may already include examples in your Listing Presentation Package and on your Presentation Boards (more on that below), the photo book really is there for the seller to flip through and see large-format versions of your photos.
Listing Presentation Boards for the Win!
Listing presentation boards are 15” x 20” of matte backing board, each showcasing a different category of marketing. Listing presentation boards are an important part of our Listing Presentation System that we offer! Some agents only have one or two boards while others have as many as seven! It really depends on the strongest features of your property marketing program.
For example, some agents might have a board for print marketing, staging, open houses, and photography, while others may also include a board for staging - before-and-after samples work great on a board!
The great thing about the boards is that they are different and a high-impact prop. When you show up to a seller's house with a portfolio case, you are showing up and saying you are different, your process is different, and you aren't afraid to stand out. Isn't that what sellers want for their house?
Building Technology into your Winning Listing Presentation
You may have noticed that so far, these marketing tools seem pretty low-tech. Even a listing syndication board is still a board! However, you can include QR codes in your listing presentation system and Boards to pull up live tech examples of your marketing.
For example, let's say there is a page in your Listing Presentation System that includes some verbiage on the importance of video and a screenshot of a property marketing video. Why not add a QR code that links directly to the video online so it can be played? If you are sitting with the seller at a listing presentation, you can have multiple tabs open, ready to play your video, show off a single-property website, show the sellers what a 3D tour looks like and how a potential buyer may interact with it, and even show stats like number of visitors, and more!
Technology definitely has a place at the listing presentation, but it should be to supplement your print materials. I do not recommend leading with technology. Remember, imagine the sales center. There may be a video loop on a television that shows the builders, the development, and the houses, but that isn't the only thing in the sales center. When people are making a large purchase or opting into a service, they want materials they can feel and read through. When forced to consume information, they are less trusting of the process except for very specific personality types.
How Can I Take My Listing Presentation to Sales-Center Quality?
You work with The Lones Group! Our Listing Presentation System is customized for you, your business, and your listing process. You might find listing presentation samples and scripts on other sites, but we actually build your entire system from scratch. No cookie-cutter approach here! You need a custom solution and we are here to provide it. Take a look at our Listing Presentation System below and schedule a one-on-one consultation with our team.
By Denise Lones CSP, M.I.R.M., CDEI - The founding partner of The Lones Group, Denise Lones, brings nearly three decades of experience in the real estate industry. With agent/broker coaching, expertise in branding, lead generation, strategic marketing, business analysis, new home project planning, product development, Denise is nationally recognized as the source for all things real estate. With a passion for improvement, Denise has helped thousands of real estate agents, brokers, and managers build their business to unprecedented levels of success, while helping them maintain balance and quality of life.